Archive for September 2010

Prejudice is defined as “A judgment or opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge or examination of the facts”. It’s common to see people judge other groups of people without any proof or solid news. Usually, people jump to conclusions about a large group of people based on the actions of very few. For example, a person might come across a proud rich man and start believing that all rich people are proud. Another example, a person may have a bad experience with someone from a specific culture and start believing that everyone from that culture is bad.

The effects of prejudice are dangerous and long term if not controlled. It originates in the mind and spreads rapidly, therefore it should be controlled in the mind before it grows and reaches the tongue or translates into actions. Lets look what the Quran says about Prejudice.

1 . “O you who believe! if a wicked person comes to you with any news, ascertain the truth, lest you harm people unknowingly, and afterwards become full of repentance for what you have done. “(Chapter 49, Verse 6)

When you hear a news, investigate and confirm it before taking any action or opinion based on it. For example, there are sometimes many prejudiced emails either against Islam or against other people. Please make sure of such news that you receive in email before forwarding email because forwarding false information can be much more dangerous than forwarding no information.

2. “O you who believe! Let not a group mock at another group, it may be that the latter are better than the former; Nor let (some) women mock at other women, it may be that the latter are better than the former, Nor defame one another, nor insult one another by nicknames. How bad is it, to insult one’s brother after having faith. And whosoever does not repent, then such are indeed wrong-doers.“(Chapter 49, Verse 11)

A group could mean another race, sect, citizens of another country. One common example i see around is Indian and Pakistani people fighting verbal wars, abusing each other on the forums, blogs etc.. I would specially like to point this verse out to them. Sometimes, people get so patriotic and emotional, that they go out of ethnical limits just to prove themselves right. God won’t ask which country or race you were from, he looks at the hearts, intentions and piety.

3.” O you who believe, stand for God and be witnesses for justice, and let not the hatred towards a people make you avoid being just. Be just, for it is closer to righteousness, and be aware of God. God is expert over what you do.” (Chapter 5, Verse 8 )

Support justice. Don’t be biased. This is a very important verse. Don’t hate all non-muslims just because you had a bad experience with or heard something offensive from some extremist groups among them. There are good and bad people in every nation. It’s very interesting that Muslims are at the forefront when it comes to judging someone or calling someone a kafir (disbeliever). But when we are stereotyped as terrorists by the media, we hasten to explain that muslims are not terrorist, and not to judge us or our religion by the actions of a few extremists. We stand for our justice which is good but we fail to do justice when it comes to others. We should stand up for justice even if its not in favor of a Muslim, or a person from your community or family.

Calling someone a Kafir

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of God be upon him) said,

“When a person calls his brother a disbeliever, one of them will certainly deserve the title, If the addressee is so as he has asserted, the disbelief of the man is confirmed, but if it is untrue, then it will revert to him.“

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

I would like to remind my sunni and shia brothers who are indulged in finding faults and calling each other kafir. Remember this before calling someone kafir – If you are right.. you don’t gain anything.. but if you are wrong you can loose everything. Why risk your faith? You will not be questioned about a certain groups’ belief. You will be questioned about your own belief, intentions and deeds.

Please comment and share your views/experiences related to the topic. To share or recommend a topic or article, email at readforsoul@gmail.com.

The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Let him who hears of the Dajjal (Antichrist) go far from him for I swear by Allah that a man will come to him thinking he is a believer and follow him because of confused ideas roused in him by him.

Abu Dawood, Book 37, Number 4306:

Narrated Ubadah ibn as-Samit:

The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: I have told you so much about the Dajjal (Antichrist) that I am afraid you may not understand. The Antichrist is short, hen-toed, woolly-haired, one-eyed, an eye-sightless, and neither protruding nor deep-seated. If you are confused about him, know that your Lord is not one-eyed.

Abu Dawood, Book 37, Number 4319:

Narrated AbuHurayrah:

The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: The Last Hour will not come before there come forth thirty Dajjals (fraudulents), everyone presuming himself that he is an apostle of Allah.

Sahih Muslim, Book 041, Number 7008:

Anas b. Malik reported that Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: There would be written three letters k. f. r., i. e. Kafir, between the eyes of the Dajjal.

Sahih Muslim, Book 041, Number 7012:

‘Uqba b. ‘Amr Abu Mas’ud al-Ansari reported: I went to Hudhaifa b. Yaman and said to him: Narrate what you have heard from Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) pertaining to the Dajjal. He said that the Dajjal would appear and there would be along with him water and fire and what the people would see as water that would be fire and that would burn and what would appear as fire that would be water and any one of you who would see that should plunge in that which he sees as fire for it would be sweet, pure water, and ‘Uqba said: I also heard it, testifying Hudhaifa.

Sahih Muslim, Book 041, Number 7034:

Anas b. Malik reported that Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: The Dajjal would be followed by seventy thousand Jews of Isfahan wearing Persian shawls.

Sahih Muslim, Book 041, Number 7035:

Umm Sharik reported: I heard Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The people would run away from the Dajjal seeking shelter in the mountains. She said: Where would be the Arabs then in that day? He said: They would be small in number.

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 88, Number 238:

Narrated Al-Mughira bin Shu’ba:

Nobody asked the Prophet as many questions as I asked regarding Ad-Dajjal. The Prophet said to me, “What worries you about him?” I said, “Because the people say that he will have a mountain of bread and a river of water with him (i.e. he will have abundance of food and water)” The Prophet said, “Nay, he is too mean to be allowed such a thing by Allah”‘ (but it is only to test mankind whether they believe in Allah or in Ad-Dajjal.)

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 88, Number 239:

Narrated Anas bin Malik:

The Prophet said, “Ad-Dajjal will come and encamp at a place close to Medina and then Medina will shake thrice whereupon every Kafir (disbeliever) and hypocrite will go out (of Medina) towards him.”

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 88, Number 246:

Narrated Abu Sa’id:

One day Allah’s Apostle narrated to us a long narration about Ad-Dajjal and among the things he narrated to us, was: “Ad-Dajjal will come, and he will be forbidden to enter the mountain passes of Medina. He will encamp in one of the salt areas neighboring Medina and there will appear to him a man who will be the best or one of the best of the people. He will say ‘I testify that you are Ad-Dajjal whose story Allah’s Apostle has told us.’ Ad-Dajjal will say (to his audience), ‘Look, if I kill this man and then give him life, will you have any doubt about my claim?’ They will reply, ‘No,’ Then Ad-Dajjal will kill that man and then will make him alive. The man will say, ‘By Allah, now I recognize you more than ever!’ Ad-Dajjal will then try to kill him (again) but he will not be given the power to do so.”

I lovedddd this movie.. I personally am a Ghazali fan. I am reading his hugee book ‘Revival of Religious Science’…. also read “Alchemy of Happiness”. I recommend those books and the movie to everyone..

“Exploring the life and impact of the greatest spiritual and legal philosopher in Islamic history, this film examines Ghazali’s existential crisis of faith that arose from his rejection of religious dogmatism, and reveals profound parallels with our own times. Ghazali became known as the Proof of Islam and his path of love and spiritual excellence overcame the pitfalls of the organised religion of his day. His path was largely abandoned by early 20th century Muslim reformers for the more strident and less tolerant school of Ibn Taymiyya. Combining drama with documentary, this film argues that Ghazali’s Islam is the antidote for today’s terror.“ – Written by Abdul Latif Salazar

I was going through my stuff and found some wallpapers i made few years ago. I took these pics with my cell phone camera usually waiting at bus stops 🙂 … I am sharing the best among them.. Verses of God over the images of creations of God… Check em out!

Last month my mom passed away. God bless her and grant her paradise, Ameen. This was the first time i saw someone pass away from this world in front of my eyes and that too my own mother. It was not easy, but it was the knowledge of death and knowledge of God that helped me alot in this situation. I constantly remembered whatever i knew about death – Verses from Quran, sayings of the Prophet and learned men. Surprisingly, i was able to deal with it in a mature way and accept that it was the will of God. I felt my intellect taking over my emotions. Instead of crying and weeping, i was thinking about what i can do to benefit her – prayers and charity.

So, i am going to share with you some thoughts. Ponder upon them. Hope you will find this helpful.

1. Realizing that God has created death and constantly reminds us of it in the Quran. He created life and we belong to him. If he wants to call us back, Why should we panic? The prophets, saints and pious people- all experienced death, so who are we to complain?

Some verses from the Quran about death..There are numerous others..

Say (to them): “Allah gives you life, then causes you to die, then He will assemble you on the Day of Resurrection about which there is no doubt. But most of mankind know not.” (Chapter 45, Verse 26)

Wherever ye are, death will find you out, even if ye are in towers built up strong and high!” If some good befalls them they say “This is from Allah”; but if evil, they say “This is from thee” (O Prophet). Say: “All things are from Allah. But what hath come to these people, that they fail to understand a single fact? (Chapter 4, Verse 78)

Its like you were playing in the hot sun for a long time and your parents are calling you back to your home. Yes, you would want to play more but your parents know what is better for you…

2. The world is full of pains and troubles. So why do people feel sad when someone dies? Isn’t he getting rid of all pains and troubles. The only thing we should worry about is his/her forgiveness and a happy eternal life. Hadith in reference to this.

“The gift of a believer is death.” [ Mishkat 1609]

Abu Huraira reported Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: The world is a prison-house for a believer and Paradise for a non-believer.

Sahih Muslim (Book #042 Hadith #7058)

So think about it. If you were in a prison with someone, and he was getting released from it, would you feel sad? Wouldn’t you worry about when you will be released?

3. If you feel sad looking at the dead body, then know that worldly death is just the separation of soul from body. What you see is just clay and mud.

The real thing – soul has gone and God knows best where it is. So pray for the forgiveness of the soul and give charity for it instead of weeping over clay and mud. I would like to share a few lines from last poem of Imam Al-Ghazali about death. I remember mentioning about this to my mother a few days before she passed away.

4. Death is actually birth in the real world. Isn’t it? Think of this – when you were born, you had to leave the womb of your mother. Did anyone express grief on your leaving the womb? No. They were all happy about your coming in this world. Similarly, when someone is leaving this world, think about its entry in the REAL world. He will meet God, see the angels, see paradise and hopefully live there – A life of never ending youth, no sickness, all kinds of pleasures that one needs… Who would be sad to know if his/her loved one is going to such a place? The only thing worth worrying and working for is the persons forgiveness and acceptance of his/her deeds by God.

5. The only thing that is hard to control is old times and memories. They will definitely make you sad and cry. Some of out of many measures that you can take regarding this are as follows.

(i) Don’t worry if you feel like crying – We are humans and have emotions and letting out tears actually softens and lightens the heart but what i am objecting is when people say ‘Had this not happened…..’, ‘Oh..If he/she was still alive….’, ‘why did this happen to us’….so on. Realise that your loved one is in a better place.

(ii) Try to keep yourself busy – Talk to people, Realize that things could have been much worse. There are people suffering alot more than you think you are. Do good things that you wanted to do. And keep in mind that you are dying too one da, so make sure you at some level are always preparing for your ultimate destination.

(iii) Patience – With time, it will get better. Your pains will heal and you will gain strength (If God wills). So be patient and thankful for whatever you have been given and Don’t worry about what is gone, because it has to go, and realize this – You had no control over it.

Please comment and share your views/experiences related to the topic. To share or recommend a topic or article, email at readforsoul@gmail.com.

Tawheed in Arabic means attributing Oneness to Allaah and describing Him as being One and Unique, with no partner or peer in His Essence and Attributes.

The Arabs say waahid, ahad and waheed, all meaning one. Allaah is Waahid, meaning that He has no rivals or peers in any way. So Tawheed means knowing Allaah is One, with none like unto Him. Whoever does not acknowledge Allaah in these terms and does not describe Him as being One with no partner or associate does not believe in Tawheed.

With regard to the shar’i definition of Tawheed, it means believing in Allaah alone as God and Lord and attributing to Him alone all the attributes of Lordship and divinity.

It may be defined as follows: Believing that Allaah is One with no partner or associate in His Lordship (ruboobiyyah), divinity (uloohiyyah) or names and attributes (al-asma’ wa’l-sifaat).

This word (Tawheed) and its derivatives are used with this meaning in the Qur’aan and Sunnah. For example:

“And your Ilaah (God) is One Ilaah [ilaahun waahidun] (God — Allaah), Laa Ilaaha illa Huwa (there is none who has the right to be worshipped but He), the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful”

[al-Baqarah 2:163]

And there are many similar verses.

In Saheeh al-Bukhaari (7372) and Saheeh Muslim (19) it is narrated that Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sent Mu’aadh ibn Jabal to Yemen, he said to him: “You are going to people from among the People of the Book, so let the first thing to which you call them be belief in Allaah alone (Tawheed). If they accept that, then tell them that Allaah has enjoined on them five prayers every day and night. If they pray then tell them that Allaah has enjoined on them zakaah from their wealth to be taken from their rich and given to their poor. If they agree to that then take it from them but avoid the best of people’s wealth.”

This indicates that Tawheed is the essence of the testimony that there is no god except Allaah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah, and that this is Islam with which Allaah sent His Prophet to the two races of mankind and the jinn, other than which Allaah will not accept any religion from anyone.

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Truly, the religion with Allaah is Islam” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:19]

“And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers”[Aal ‘Imraan 3:85]

Once this is understood, it should be noted that the scholars have divided Tawheed into three categories, as follows:

Tawheed al-Ruboobiyyah (Oneness of Divine Lordship): means believing in Allaah as One and Unique with regard to His actions such as creation, sovereignty, control, giving life and death, and so on.

Whoever believes that there is any creator other than Allaah or any sovereign controlling this universe and disposing of its affairs other than Allaah has denied this aspect of Tawheed and disbelieved in Allaah.

The kuffaar of old accepted this aspect of Tawheed in general terms, although they differed with regard to some of its details. The evidence that they used to accept this is to be found in several verses of the Qur’aan such as the following (interpretation of the meaning):

“And if you were to ask them: ‘Who has created the heavens and the earth and subjected the sun and the moon?’ they will surely reply: ‘Allaah.’ How then are they deviating (as polytheists and disbelievers)?” [al-‘Ankaboot 29:61]

“And if you were to ask them: ‘Who sends down water (rain) from the sky, and gives life therewith to the earth after its death?’ they will surely reply: ‘Allaah.’ Say: ‘All the praises and thanks be to Allaah!’ Nay, most of them have no sense” [al-‘Ankaboot 29:63]

“And if you ask them who created them, they will surely say: ‘Allaah.’ How then are they turned away (from the worship of Allaah Who created them)?” [al-Zukhruf 43:87]

In these verses Allaah states that the kuffaar affirm that He is the Creator, Sovereign and Controller, but despite that they do not worship Him alone (Tawheed of worship), which points to the graveness of their wrongdoing and lies, and the weakness of their reasoning. For if there is One Who is described in such terms, none should be worshipped except Him alone and none should be described as being one and unique except Him; may He be glorified above those that they associate with him.

So whoever affirms this Tawheed in the true sense must inevitably also affirm the Oneness of Allaah’s Divinity (Tawheed al-Uloohiyyah).

Tawheed al-Uloohiyyah means devoting all acts of worship, both inward and outward, in word and deed, to Allaah Alone, and not worshipping anything or anyone other than Allaah, no matter who he is. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him” [al-Isra’ 17:23]

“Worship Allaah and join none with Him (in worship)”[al-Nisa’ 4:36]

It may be described as devoting all one’s actions to Allaah alone.

It is called Tawheed al-Uloohiyyah because it is based on ta’alluh lillaah which is worship and devotion of Allaah accompanied by love and veneration.

It is also called Tawheed al-‘Ibaadah (oneness of worship) because it means that a person worships Allaah by doing that which He has commanded and avoiding that which He has forbidden.

It is also called Tawheed al-Talab wa’l-Qasd wa’l-Iraadah (Oneness of goal, purpose and will) because it means that a person does not seek anything except the Face of Allaah, so he worships Him sincerely.

This is the kind of Tawheed concerning which people went astray, which is why the Prophets were sent and the Books were revealed. This is the purpose for which the universe was created and laws were prescribed. Concerning this disputes arose between the Prophets and their peoples, so the stubborn were doomed and the believers were saved.

Whoever goes astray with regard to this Tawheed, such as devoting some of his worship to someone other than Allaah, has gone beyond the pale of Islam and drifted away from true belief. May Allaah protect us from that.

With regard to Tawheed al-Asma’ wa’l-Sifaat(Oneness of the Divine Names and Attributes), this means affirming the names and attributes of Allaah and believing that there is none like unto Allaah in His names and attributes. This Tawheed is based on two principles:

1 – Affirmation: i.e., affirming that which Allaah has affirmed for Himself in His Book or that His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) has affirmed of His beautiful names and sublime attributes in a manner that suits the Majesty and Greatness of Allaah, without distorting them, twisting their meanings, denying their reality or discussing how they are.

2 – Denial: i.e., denying that Allaah has any faults and denying any shortcomings that He has denied Himself. The evidence for that is the words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning):

“There is nothing like Him, and He is the All‑Hearer, the All‑Seer”[al-Shoora 42:11]

So He has denied that He bears any resemblance to His creation, and affirmed that He has attributes of perfection in a manner that befits Him, may He be glorified.